


We Bought A Tea Plantation

by Arlene0401



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Canon-Typical Violence, Gen, Inspired by Fanart, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Past Alcohol Abuse/Alcoholism, Possible Spoilers, Post-Canon, Veterans, after the war, set after chapter 74, war is won
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-11-12
Updated: 2015-11-20
Packaged: 2018-05-01 08:08:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,899
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5198507
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Arlene0401/pseuds/Arlene0401
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The war is over. The war is won. But humanity is clear out of tea. Enter the Survey Corps again, namely Levi, who doesn't cope well with peace, trailed by his remaining squad.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Plan

**Author's Note:**

> Actually this started out as a silly rambling in the comments to ayashige-doodles' work [Hunter](http://ayashige-doodles.deviantart.com/art/Hunter-411702648) on DA and wormed its way into my brain to the point I had to write it down. Yet the silly idea turned into a bunch of veterans suffering from ptsd and trying to make do in times of peace.  
> I hope I don't suck too much at canonverse writing, it was surprisingly hard!
> 
> Kudos, comments and criticism are much appreciated.
> 
> WARNING: in the first chapter Levi is having alcohol problems, and throughout there's ptsd.

„Heichou. Heichou, wake up.“

A groan.

„Come on, wake up. Are you drunk again?“

„ _Fuggoff_.“

The curtains were drawn back, and bright sunlight blinded him, stabbed into his head like knives.

„Fuck off. Leave me alone.“

„No, Heichou. Come on, get up. Here‘s some water. When did you last eat something?“

„Don‘t know.“

Eren looked down on the man who had once been called humanity‘s strongest soldier. Now he was on the best way to turn into a useless drunken wreck. Six months had passed since they had defeated the titans. Six months since they had regained Wall Maria, as well as all the lands beyond. The members of the Survey Corps were heroes. They were celebrated. And they were completely useless. As well as the Garrison. Of course, they had been offered other jobs. Of course, they were also free to accept lifelong provision for their achievements. 

But what about new goals? For years, or decades, they had dedicated their lives to that one goal. To free humankind and destroy the titans. Now that had been taken from them, and some of them dealt with it better than others. Erwin Smith had taken his zeal to a political career. Sasha had set off to her home village, trailed by Connie. Armin and Hanji were deep in uncovering the last secrets of the titans.

As for Levi... Levi didn’t deal with it well. He had only known the hardness of the Underground, and the single-minded focus on the Survey Corps’ ideals. What would come after that, other than his being able to keep his equipment and clothes blood-free and clean, he’d never taken the time or effort to ponder over. And now that the whole world was his to roam, he was at a complete loss. He stayed in the house he’d been assigned, at his request not in Central but in Trost, spending most of his wages on liquor, and refused to move on. His nights were haunted by his dead comrades. Over and over they fell, their agonized screams filling the night. 

Eren, who had come to depend on and trust Levi so much during their service time, found himself unable to leave Levi to his fate. So he stuck around, trying to take care of him, forcing him to eat and sober up from time to time. Wherever Eren went, Mikasa wasn’t far, so she had stayed as well. Hanji and Erwin tried to help as much as they could, but due to their busy schedules couldn’t come around often.

“Here, that’s good. Drink the water. Now come along. I prepared a bath for you. Wouldn’t you like a bath?”, Eren coaxed. Levi allowed himself to be led to the bathroom and be scrubbed down like a child. His eyes were bloodshot and empty. Eren kept chatting to him, avoiding anything... dark. He talked about Sasha’s last letters, the unusually mild spring weather, the cranes he’d seen passing overhead. Nothing about the hesitant colonization of Wall Maria. The rebuilding of towns and roads. The corpses they still kept discovering. His nightmares.

When he’d gotten Levi out of the tub, and dressed, he asked: “Now, what about some breakfast, Heichou?”

“Not Heichou”, Levi mumbled.

“Sorry?”

“I’m not Heichou anymore. Don’t call me that. I’m nothing. Why do you still act as if you’re a subordinate? You don’t have to do this. You’re free to go wherever you want. You’ve earned yourself a lifelong vacation, kid. Didn’t you want to see the ocean with your friends?”

“I’m exactly where I want to be, Heichou. You never let me alone when I needed someone. Now I’m not leaving you alone.”

“I don’t need no one.”

“I beg to differ, Levi. You might not want anybody around you, but you certainly need somebody to look out for you at the moment.” He gently took Levi’s arm. “Come on. Let’s have breakfast.”  
Today was a rather good day. Maybe the sunshine was having some effect, but Levi wasn’t as gloomy as usual. So Eren took a deep breath, and lightly asked if they should go see Flegel Reeves, as they were running out of tea. Then he prayed silently to Maria, Rose and Sina, and added a quick plead to Queen Historia for good measure.

Much to his relief, Levi agreed. Time to get the plan he had worked out with Armin, Hange, Erwin and Flegel started.

 

At Reeves’ Warehouse they were greeted cordially and led to Flegel’s office, much to Levi’s surprise. The man got up from his desk to shake their hands immediately. “Well good morning, gentlemen, How are you? Sorry to say so, Mr Ackerman, but you look like shit. I know you pay my liquor department way too many visits. As much as I would like to forbid my employees to sell you anything, I know it wouldn’t be of any use.” He shook his head sadly. “Now, what can I do for you?”

“Tea”, Levi croaked before Eren could come up with a more polite answer. “We came to buy tea, not put up with your chastising, you bigot. Why are we even in your bloody office and not in the shop?”

“Aah. Now, Mr Ackerman, there is a slight problem with your request. All the tea plantations were far south in Wall Maria and as you might be aware, the area was evacuated six years ago. From then on, we’ve only used up our stocks. No new tea was produced. Now, of course, Wall Maria is free again, but people don’t like to move there.” He regarded them over his folded hands. “I fear that I will not be able to provide any tea until somebody moves south and starts growing tea again. All those deserted plantations are just waiting to be put into operation again. Tea shrubs are rather long lived, I trust that there might still be enough left.”

“No tea?” Levi asked, horrified. It sounded as if somebody had forbidden him to breathe.

“Of course”, Flegel leaned back and folded his hands behind his neck, “if there was someone willing to take the risk... to be a pioneer... that would be a worthwhile task. Imagine how he could inspire people... encourage them to follow and reestablish settlements in Wall Maria... or even moving beyond... that would be a survey task...” He gazed out of the window dreamily.

Eren was moved by the man’s skills. He had grown a lot since he had to step in his father’s footsteps and become a leading businessman, cunning and artful. Eren glanced over at Levi. Would he take the bait? Levi was damn smart and smelled a trap miles ahead. But right now he was in an awful state. He was tired, he was hungover, and he faced the prospect of a life without tea. Maybe it was enough to dull his senses. Maybe it was enough for their plan. Maybe.

Levi narrowed his eyes. “What do you suggest, Flegel?”

Flegel beamed an innocent smile. “Oh, just a couple of days ago I bumped into a family who used to own a tea plantation down south. Asked them when they would be back in business again. But they don’t want to. Want to stay in the city. They’d be more than willing to sell their plantation cheap, Mr Ackerman. Really cheap. As you know, my business is, well, business, but I promised to ask around a bit. With the stocks being as low as they are, one could set about any price for tea. Plus, of course, one would be able to enjoy one’s own tea. Homegrown! Limitless! Produced to one’s own taste!”

“I’m not a farmer, Flegel, if that’s what you’re implying.”

Flegel put his hands to his chest as if deeply hurt. “Of course not, Mr Ackerman. But you’re a man of many talents. Fearless. Adventurous. Inventive. For the work”, he waved a hand dismissively, “you could hire people. Your... retirement pension...” Levi sneered, “... is quite generous, isn’t it? I think you’d have no problem in making a deal with the owners, and hire some workers. The family is also willing to share all their knowledge on tea growing, harvesting et cetera.”

Levi seemed to ponder.

“What about...”, he started.

“As for required materials, supplies, horses, some livestock to get you started... I would provide that. As an advance payment for your first delivery. I think you would come to find my conditions agreeable, Mr Ackerman.”

 

Several weeks later, they loaded the last supplies on a carriage. Flegel had indeed provided more than enough. They had horses, oxen to pull the heavy carriages, goats and chickens. Some cows and a bull calf. They had food, clothing, medicine and any kind of agricultural equipment they might wish for. The journey would take them long, to the outermost perimeter of Wall Maria, and they would be quite isolated, until other people decided to move as well. To nobody’s surprise, Mikasa was to accompany them. That Jean and Armin were coming, was more surprising. 

Jean had been expected by everybody to move on to Military Police, like he had always intended, now that he had avenged Marco’s death. But what he’d went through over the last months, and what he’d seen of the Military Police, made him unwilling to do so. As much to his surprise as to everybody else’s, he found he could not part with all his comrades. So he stayed with what remained of Levi’s squad. Eren griped and grumbled but to no avail. “You cannot expect Mikasa to watch out for your suicidal ass all on her own”, Jean spat at him, and that was the end of the discussion. 

Armin had dropped titan research in favor of accompanying his friends. As long as they had been comparatively safe and established in Trost, he’d been able to work with Hanji, but now they moved back to their home district, to unknown tasks, nothing could stop him from joining them. “Not boasting but I think you guys might need my brain skills again. Besides, I think that our task as Levi’s squad is not complete yet. We can’t leave like that.”

Eren felt bad that his friends still seemed to be tied down to him. He wanted them to move on with their lives, find what would make them happy. On the other hand, he was glad they were by his side like they always had been. A life without Mikasa and Armin seemed bleak and meaningless. But a life without Levi, the man who had saved his life countless times, who had encouraged and guided him, seemed equally meaningless. He couldn’t leave him. Not when he was so shattered and broken.

“Explain to me again how I came to agree with this shit.”

Eren turned around to Levi, who scowled at the cages with chickens, and smiled.

“Well, we’re somehow still doing Survey Corps work. Exploring. Pioneering.”

“Don’t give me that shit. I know that you tricked me. You and Flegel and probably that damn Erwin as well. We’re going to be bloody farmers. Look at all these filthy animals! Disgusting.”  
“Heichou, we will need them. We will have to be self-reliant. We need milk and meat and eggs. Therefore, we have to bring them with us.”

“Well I’m not taking bloody care of them. Horses are okay. Horses make sense. But I’ll be damned if I look after some smelly goats.”

“That’s what Mikasa and Armin and Jean and me are there for, Heichou.”

“How often do I have to tell you not to call me Heichou?”

Eren shook his head. “It’s no use, Heichou. We haven’t officially retired or transferred. So, officially we’re still the Survey Corps. And as such, we’re your squad.”

Levi scoffed and then turned pale when he heard a familiar voice call out to them.

“Hey-hey-hey! Wait for me! You wouldn’t be leaving without us, would you?”

“Shitty hell. What are you doing here, four-eyes?”

Hanji came riding towards them, the saddlebags of their horse crammed full with scripts and books. Moblit trailed behind.

“You didn’t actually think I was going to let you throw yourself into the wilderness without me, did you?”

“I thought you were at last happy researching your beloved titans without having to put up with all the fighting.”

“Oh, _poop_ on the titans. That’s all been said and done. What we need now is not looking at the past, but into the future. This is going to be way more exciting! A whole new experience! And admit it, you wouldn’t last a week without my researching and scientific abilities.” Hanji looked rather smug.

Levi stared at them. “Whatever. But as you’re staying in my house, you’re going to bathe on a regular basis or I’ll chuck you in the horse trough.”

“Yes, yes”, they waved their hand dismissively, “whatever makes you happy. On the plus side, from just inside Wall Maria we can go exploring the outside!”

Levi glanced at Moblit. “You’re still putting up with that nag even if you don’t have to?”

Moblit smiled nervously and shrugged. Apparently as scary and stressful life with Hanji was, it was even more scary and stressful without them.

 

At last everything was gathered, everybody was ready, and they set off to the outward gate of Trost. Much to their surprise, many citizens had gathered there to see them off and cheer, among them Flegel Reeves and some of his men, as well as Erwin Smith. As a parting gift, Erwin and Flegel presented them a box of sparkling wine, but with a wink to Levi they handed it to Eren to take care of it. 

“Didn’t think your responsibilities in Central would leave you enough leisure time to come all the way to Trost just to see us off”, Levi said to Erwin. Erwin smiled. “I know what I owe to those who saved all our asses”, he replied.

Levi scoffed. “Now isn’t that fancy politician talk.”

Erwin became earnest. “It’s not, Levi, and you know that. I forced you into the Survey Corps and you offered it all you had to give. Now it’s time for you to get something back in return. Figure out what life is about. Hell, actually live a life. You’ve already spent 30-odd years on earth without having had a chance to. And as much as you will gripe at those kids and Hanji and Moblit following you around, they might be able to help you. They wouldn’t be attached to you if you weren’t a good person.”

Levi just stared at the ground, frowning and gnawing his lip. Erwin seemed a little embarrassed at his speech too, so he just nodded and gave Levi’s horse a pat. “Get going, then. Make those people believe that there’s a life outside Wall Rose.”

Levi nodded at Eren, who steered the first carriage, and they made their way out of town.


	2. A new start

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a long trip, leading to a new home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello to anyone who's stuck around for chapter 2!
> 
> As always, comments and kudos are greatly appreciated.  
> 

As Trost slowly faded into the distance behind them, their spirits lifted. Eren and Jean steered the carriages, the others rode on horseback, sometimes in pairs or small groups, sometimes alone. It was nice to have some open space around them, and not having to fear to be attacked. Yet Levi, Mikasa and Hanji wore their 3D maneuvering gear. Some habits died hard. They moved continuously to the south as the sun moved over their heads. It was late spring, everything was green and blossoming. That evening Wall Rose had disappeared from sight completely. They set camp for the night by a small creek that had followed the road for some miles. The night air was crisp, but at the fire it was comfortable enough. One after another, they bundled up in their blankets and dozed off. All except for Levi, who was sitting with his back to a tree, his gaze following the trail of smoke upwards to the sky. He knew he wouldn’t be able to sleep anyway, so he might as well keep watch. Eren had bundled up close by, flanked by Mikasa. He slept fitfully, apparently troubled by nightmares. At one point he started crying softly. Levi reached out to pat the kid’s unruly hair gingerly. He didn’t know what else to do to prevent him from waking everybody up. At the same moment he noticed that Mikasa had reached out in half-sleep to pat Eren’s hand. Eren whimpered: “Mom...” but quieted down after that and slept peacefully for some more hours. In the early morning hours however he woke up to find Levi still staring at the sky.

“Heichou”, he yawned, “go to sleep. We have some more days of travelling. It’s no use if you’re so tired we have to bind you to your horse.”

“Somebody has to keep watch.”

Eren sat up, wrapped in his blanket, and managed to look amused. “Keep watch? There’s no more titans around, Heichou.”

“No. But there may be bears or wolves or rabid dogs or whatnot. There haven’t been any humans around for six years.”

“They’ll keep away from the fire”, Eren yawned again. “Try to sleep a bit. If it troubles you so much, I’ll keep an eye open.” He sat next to Levi and nudged him closer to the fire. Levi rolled his eyes but obeyed anyway.

 

The next days passed without many incidents. They passed some settlements, some were occupied again, most not. They saw destroyed buildings, unkempt fields, overgrown gardens and straying cattle. The mood became gloomier again. It seemed such a huge task for the reduced number of humankind to resettle the lands of Wall Maria, let alone the countries beyond. Yet they would make a start. They had to. The settlers they came across seemed happy enough to see other people, especially as they were so obviously going to stay. Each time they passed an inhabited settlement, they had to stop for a chat, some news, and more often than not were forced to accept some refreshments, or presents of food,, or drinks, or seeds, although they insisted they were well equipped. But the farther they got, the less people they met.

The landscape slowly became more hilly, the road more winded. Following the tea planter’s directions, they left the main road and traveled along side roads that became more and more overgrown. And one afternoon, at the end of a valley, they reached their destination. The valley and next hills were covered in green shrubs, in some places overshadowed by trees. The farmhouse stood on top of a hill, overlooking the scenery. Although having been abandoned for six years, it was in surprisingly good shape. Obviously no titans had roamed here, no looters either. For a moment they all halted their horses in the front court and regarded the house and the scenery before dismounting. Eren and Jean climbed from the carriages and stretched their backs.

“Well...”, Hanji said at last to Levi, “it’s your house. Welcome home. Go ahead.”

Levi hesitated only a moment before pushing the door open. At first it jammed, but then slowly gave way with a tired squeak. On the ground floor, there was a large kitchen with adjoining pantry, a spacious living room, an office and a utility room which connected to the stables and barns. Upstairs, there were bedrooms and a bathroom. The master bedroom had its own bathroom.

After a short break, they split to get all the work done. Jean and Mikasa started unloading the carriages. Armin and Moblit cleared the stables and tended to the animals. Hanji walked off to inspect the tea shrubs. Levi and Eren, of course, went to cleaning the house. They opened all windows and started with the kitchen. As the former occupants had left in a hurry, there was not only six years worth of dust, but also a lot of disarray and spoiled food to clean and tidy up. Eren smiled behind his mask when he heard Levi humming happily and horribly off-key. He didn’t know anything that pleased and calmed Levi like cleaning. Soon enough the cupboards were stacked with gleaming dishes and cooking utensils, the ceiling and walls were free of cobwebs and the floor gleamed spotless. There was a fire burning merrily in the stove and the pantry was devoid of rotten food and mouse droppings. They moved the bedding and carpets from the bedrooms outdoors to give them a severe spanking with a rug beater that sent dust flying every way. 

Hanji stuck their head out of the window. “Hey, you clean freaks. Time for some tea and something to eat. I don’t want you to drop dead on your first day here.”

“What, you cooked, four-eyes? I’m not eating any of that.”

“Hell, I’m not your frigging housewife and I’m not touching that stove. So it’s bread and cheese for your highness. And it’s Moblit who’s made the tea.”

“It’s probably going to be halfway drinkable, then”, Levi muttered to Eren as they dragged themselves indoors. In the kitchen doorway, he halted for a second and blinked. The table was set, candles were burning, and the others were assembling around the table, leaving the chair at the head of the table for him. It seemed so unreal, so peaceful, so... heartwarming. I’m home, Levi thought. This will be my home. No. Our home. He washed his hands in the kitchen sink and took his seat. Out of nowhere, Moblit appeared by his side with a tray of glasses filled with the sparkling wine they had been given by Erwin and Flegel. When everybody hat sat down, Levi noticed they all looked at him expectantly. He fingered the stem of his glass.

“Well. I’ll make this short. I don’t have any idea why any of you is willing to put up with me of their own free will, and in all honesty I have no idea if this is going to work. But even though I’ve been giving you shit for following me around, and in all probability will give you more shit in the future... thank you, guys. And... we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for all those who sacrificed their lives so we could have this moment. Let’s make the most of it to honor their memory.” He raised his glass. “To absent friends.”

“To absent friends”, the others replied, and after they drank there was a small silence, until Armin hiccuped loudly from the sparkling wine and they all started laughing and couldn’t stop. The meal, sparse as it was, was finished in a cheerful atmosphere, they talked about the trip and the house and bitched halfheartedly about who was going to take which bedroom and who’d have stable duty in the morning, and Hanji told them that she thought the shrubs were in comparatively good shape, and when Armin started dozing off, half leaning on Hanji’s shoulder, Jean and Mikasa cleaned up the dishes while the others collected the bedding and blankets and got the bedrooms ready for the night. Levi of course – and without any dispute – claimed the master bedroom, and as there were enough rooms for all of them there was not much to argue about for the others. Having a room all to oneself was an unknown luxury for almost all of them except for Hanji and Moblit, who because of their military ranks didn’t have to sleep in dorms.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You can find my SNK and personal blog under [glassesgirl0401](http://glassesgirl0401.tumblr.com)

**Author's Note:**

> You can find my SNK and personal blog under [glassesgirl0401](http://glassesgirl0401.tumblr.com)


End file.
